Josefa Velasquez and Dan Goldberg are reporting at Politico New York the state health department will launch New York's medical marijuana program Thu., Jan. 7, even as three of the five companies awarded a license to grow and distribute the drug say they will not have all their dispensaries open on time. The program will launch exactly 18 months after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the Compassionate Care Act into law. Access to medical marijuana remains a concern, however. The program calls for 20 dispensaries located statewide, but licensees are having trouble getting all their dispensaries up and running. And patients still do not know how much the drug will cost because the health department has not yet set the price. When asked about pricing and the identification cards patients are slated to receive, JP O'Hare, spokesman for the state Department of Health, said the details on the program “will be released shortly.” Read the full story at Politico New York.